Faced with a deepening economic recession and smaller nest eggs, more U.S. workers than ever are delaying retirement, recent surveys and reports found.

“Even before the global financial crisis, the retirement outlook for Americans was grim,” Beth Almeida, executive director of the National Institute on Retirement Security (NIRS) said in a recent statement. “This month, millions of workers and retirees are opening their individual retirement account statements and likely feeling that their retirement aspirations are an unattainable fantasy.”